Tag: Management

Over the past year or so, there has been the discussion around flood management in the GTA communities. Most of these discussions were a result of the heavy rainfalls and flooding that took place last July (2013).

If you were to go back almost 10 years ago to the Finch Avenue Flood that washed away some of the roadway. It was partially due to both altering the natural flow of water for development and the massive amount of asphalt and cement in the area. The large amount of imprevious surfaces resulted in the water not having any place to go and building up.

Some communities are now focusing on and removing their imprevious surfaces and replacing them with either pemerable paving or creating gardens. An example of pemerable surfaces/paving that is currently being used for both commercial and residential uses is a company called CoreGravel. CoreGravel uses a series of raised hollow hexagons which can be filled with either gravel, soil, or grass. What I like about this product is that even though it is pemerable surface and can be filled with various product, it is still strong enough to stand up to the weight of automobiles and accessible devices.

A lot of communities are now focusing on rain gardens. These are gardens that are usually incorporated beside the sidewalk, where water run-off can be catched and reduce flooding. Take a look at these examples in various North American communities.

I would suggest that GTA communities begin focusing on adding and increasing their pemerable surfaces to help reduce urban flooding. There should also be a focus on ‘wild design’ and incorporating nature into current and future designs. It would also benefit communities to add in more greenspace such as Greenroofs and rain basins to reduce runoff. Implementing this now, would be able to reduce the cost of flooding and water damage in future years to come.

There is a need for urban ecology in our Cities. A recent publication from TD Bank states that urban foresty in Toronto is valued at $7 Billion. Now, I do believe the monetary value is used in most cases for it to be relatable for the general public. I think most would not understand the impacts of congestion, urban vegetation, or the July flood if there was not a monetary figure connected to it. The break down of this cost includes weather flow, carbon sequestering, and air quality. This does show how vital urban forestry is. Some of the damage from the July Flood in 2013 could of been mitigated if there was more urban forest. Hopefully, the City and other cities will begin to add more additional greenscpace in their planning since of the numerous benefits they provide.

From the publications it states:

Bottom line Urban forests are made up of the trees, shrubs and plants that grow in our yards and parks and that line our streets. Torontonians recognize that their urban forest represents an important investment in the city’s environmental condition,